Everett, 25, is being treated in Buffalo at the Millard Fillmore Gates Circle Hospital, where he had surgery for his injuries. Everett is awake and asking questions, and he is no longer on a ventilation (breathing) machine. Everett is being fed through a feeding tube and is taking medication to try to prevent clots from forming in this legs, doctors said at a news conference today.

When Everett arrived at the hospital on Sunday, he couldn't move his arms or legs. Since then, he has been able to move his legs and ankles, bend his hip, wiggle his toes, and move some arm muscles.

WebMD spoke with professor Barth Green, MD, FACS, about Everett's hypothermia treatment. Green chairs the neurosurgery department at the University of Miami's Jackson Memorial Hospital. He's also the president and co-founder of the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, which is part of the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine.

"He's got good movement in his arms and legs, and his legs are moving better than his arms," says Green. "That's wonderful."

Kevin Everett's Treatment

Green explained the hypothermia treatment Everett received on Sunday.

"He received ice-cold saline, which is a salt solution, into the veins of his arm. That lowered his whole body temperature," Green says.

"This is just a minimal drop in temperature from 98.6 to to 92 degrees Fahrenheit, for example," Green says. "What this does is just like putting an ice pack on a bruised arm. It prevents the hemorrhage and swelling that would occur if you didn't put an ice pack on. It's as simple as that. So it prevents the spinal cord from self-destructing" after the initial injury, says Green.